2 Port PCI Low Profile RS232 Serial Adapter Card with 16550 UART

It depends on your motherboard. This PCI card is keyed for 5V PCI and PCI-X slots. If your motherboard's PCI or PCI-X slots are keyed for 5V, this will work.  If it is keyed for 3.3V, it will not.  You can tell which your motherboard is keyed for by the location of the notch on the slot.  To confirm whether this PCI card will fit into your PCI-X slot, refer to your motherboard's documentation.

Prior to installing this device, ensure that your operating system is up to date (for example, you have installed the most recent service pack).

To install the driver:

1. Download the latest drivers from the StarTech.com website (http://www.startech.com/Support). You can find the part number and product ID on the product’s packaging.

Note: Windows will typically save the files to the Downloads folder that is associated with your user account (for example, C:\Users\your_name\Downloads).

2. Once the download is complete, right-click the zip folder that you downloaded, select Extract All, and follow the on-screen instructions.
3. Select the appropriate folder for your operating system.
4. Right-click Setup.exe. 
5. Click Run as Administrator.

Note: If the Run as Administrator option is not available, you might be attempting to run the installer from within the zipped file. Extract the files using the instructions in Step 2.

6. Follow the on-screen prompts to install the device drivers and restart the computer when prompted.
7. Your computer will automatically complete the driver installation and your device should be ready to use.

Prior to installing this device, ensure that your operating system is up to date (for example, you have installed the most recent service pack).

To install the driver:

1. Download the latest drivers from the StarTech.com website (http://www.startech.com/Support). You can find the part number and product ID on the product’s packaging.

Note: Windows will typically save the files to the Downloads folder that is associated with your user account (for example, C:\Documents and Settings\your_name\My Documents\Downloads).

2. Once the download is complete, right-click the zip folder that you downloaded, select Extract All, and follow the on-screen instructions.
3. Select the appropriate folder for your operating system.
4. Double-click Setup.exe.
5. Follow the on-screen prompts to install the device drivers and restart the computer when prompted.
6. Your computer will automatically complete the driver installation and your device should be ready to use.

Before you install the device, make sure that your operating system is current (for example, the most recent service pack is installed).

1. Download the latest drivers from the StarTech.com website at http://www.startech.com/Support. The part number and product ID are on the product packaging.

Note: Windows usually saves the files to the Downloads folder that is associated with your user account (for example, C:\Users\your_name\Downloads).

2. After the download is complete, right-click the zip folder that you downloaded, click Extract All, and complete the instructions.
3. Press the Windows key + R, type devmgmt.msc, and press Enter to open the Device Manager.
4. Right-click PCI Serial Port, which will have a “!” or “?” next to it to indicate a driver issue.
5. Click Update Driver.
6. Click Browse my computer for driver software.
7. Select the Let me pick from a list of device drivers on my computer option.
8. On the Select your device’s type from the list below screen, click Show All Devices, and click Next.

Note: The Select your device’s type from the list below screen does not appear on all systems. If you do not see this screen, skip this step.

9. Select the Have Disk option.
10. Browse to the Drivers folder and open the 32-bit or the 64-bit folder, depending on your system type.

Note: To view your system type, press Windows key + R, type control /name microsoft.system, and press Enter.

11. Click the StnMF file or the NmXpMf file (only one of the file names is displayed). Click OK, and then click Next.
12. The COM ports are listed in Device Manager under Ports (COM & LPT). Repeat steps 4 to 11 for each of the COM ports, selecting the StnPorts file or the NmPorts file in step 11.

Before you install the device, make sure that your operating system is current (for example, the most recent service pack is installed).

1. Download the latest drivers from the StarTech.com website at http://www.startech.com/Support. The part number and product ID are on the product packaging.

Note: Windows usually saves the files to the Downloads folder that is associated with your user account (for example, C:\Documents and Settings\your_name\My Documents\Downloads).

2. After the download is complete, right-click the zip folder that you downloaded, click Extract All, and complete the instructions.
3. Press the Windows key + R, type devmgmt.msc, and press Enter to open the Device Manager.
4. Right-click PCI Serial Port, which will have “!” or “?” next to it to indicate a driver issue.
5. Click Update Driver.
6. On the Hardware Update Wizard screen, click Install from a list or specific location (Advanced), and then click Next.
7. Select the Don’t search, I will choose the driver to install option, and then click Next.
8. On the Hardware Type screen, click Show All Devices, and then click Next.

Note: The Hardware Type screen does not appear on all systems. If you do not see this screen, skip this step.

9. On the Select the Device Driver you want to install for this hardware screen, select the Have Disk option.
10. In the Install from Disk dialog box, click Browse.
11. Browse to the Drivers folder and open the 32-bit or the 64-bit folder, depending on your system type.

Note: To view your system type, press Windows key + R, type control /name microsoft.system, and press Enter.

12. Click the StnMF file or the NmXpMf file (only one of the file names is displayed). Click OK, and then click Next.
13. The COM ports are listed in Device Manager under Ports (COM & LPT). Repeat steps 4 to 11 for each of the COM ports, selecting the StnPorts file or the NmPorts file in step 11.

To confirm that Windows detects your expansion card, complete the following:

1. Press the Windows key+R, type devmgmt.msc, and press Enter.
2. In Device Manager, under the appropriate heading, confirm that your expansion card is listed and that there isn't an exclamation mark next to it.  For example, a USB controller card would be under Universal Serial Bus controllers.

Your expansion card is listed according to the name of the chipset. To determine the name of the chipset of your expansion card, navigate to www.StarTech.com and look on the Technical Specifications tab for your product.

When you troubleshoot issues with a serial device, there are some quick tests that you can complete to rule out potential problems. You can test to make sure that the following components are working correctly and are not the source of the issue:

• Serial cables

• Serial ports

• Serial devices

To test your setup components, try the following:

• Use the serial cable, serial port, and serial device in another setup to see if the problem is with the components or the setup.

• Use a different serial cable, serial port, and serial device in your setup to see if the problem persists. Ideally, you should test a component that you know works in another setup.

When you test your cables, it is recommended that you do the following:

• Test each cable individually.

• Use short cables when you are testing.

When you test the serial ports and serial device, it is recommended that you do the following:

• Press the Windows key + R, type devmgmt.msc, and press Enter to open Device Manager. Check to see if your device is listed under Ports (COM & LPT).

• Make sure that the COM port number is the correct number for the serial device and that the software being used to connect the computer to the serial device uses the correct COM port number. 

• If you do not see the COM port number in Device Manager see this FAQ for PCI/PCIe expansion cards: https://www.startech.com/support/faqs/technical-support?topic=expansion-cards#pci-pcie-cannot-boot-os-or-detect-windows
  or this FAQ for USB devices: https://www.startech.com/support/faqs/technical-support?topic=expansion-cards#usb-cannot-detect-windows

• If the device is listed with an error, follow the instructions on the website to reinstall the drivers.

Note: Some serial devices work only if the COM port number is between a certain range. For example, COM1 to COM4.

• Perform a serial loopback test.  See this FAQ on how to perform a RS-232 serial loopback test: http://www.startech.com/faq/serial_loopback_test_rs232_windows

To check whether or not an RS-232 serial port is working, perform an RS-232 loopback test by doing the following:

1. If your serial port is not female, convert it by taking a female/female cable or gender changer and plugging it into the serial port.
2. Take a metal paperclip or wire and cross pins 2 and 3. If you look closely at the female end, the pins should be numbered.
3. Open a telnet session on the COM port number of the device that you are testing. To find out the COM port number, refer to the following FAQ: https://www.startech.com/faq/com-port-listing-windows.

Note: To open a telnet session on the COM port, you need a telnet client like PuTTY or Hyper Terminal. Windows XP comes with Hyper Terminal.

4. When the session is open, anything you type into it you should see. The loopback test fails when you cannot see what you are typing.

If the loopback test fails, make sure that the serial cable or gender changer that you are using works and that the adapter is in the correct port. 

You can check multiple ports at the same time by opening multiple sessions, putting the loopback adapter on one port, and trying to type into each session.  When you can see what you are typing, you know that the COM port is working and you can see which port number the physical serial port is. Close the window for the port that you just tested to speed up the testing of the remaining serial ports.

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